HB 1155: Tift County; board of commissioners; revise purchasing provisions

Tift County's government operates under a special local Act from 1917 that the General Assembly has amended many times, most notably in 1985. That law includes specific sections spelling out how the county board of commissioners must handle purchasing and competitive bidding. This bill removes one of those sections (Section 10A) entirely and rewrites Section 10. Under the new language, the board of commissioners remains the county's purchasing agent responsible for buying goods and services for county use, but instead of following the old statutory procedures, purchasing and bidding will now be governed by a purchasing and bidding policy that the board itself adopts. The bill also repeals any conflicting laws, which is standard language clearing the way for the new provision to take effect.

• Deletes Section 10A of Tift County's local governing Act, removing whatever specific purchasing rule it previously contained.
• Rewrites Section 10 so the county board of commissioners continues to serve as the county's purchasing agent for all county purchases.
• Shifts control over detailed purchasing and bidding procedures from the text of the law itself to a policy the board of commissioners adopts on its own.
• Repeals any other state or local laws that conflict with this change.

Tift County's board of commissioners, county government staff who handle procurement, and vendors or contractors who do business with Tift County by bidding on county purchases and contracts.

By moving purchasing rules out of the statute and into a board-adopted policy, Tift County commissioners gain more flexibility to change how they buy goods and services without needing the General Assembly to amend the law each time, though this also removes previously fixed statutory bidding requirements.

• Section 1 strikes Section 10A of the 1917 Act (as amended in 1985) entirely, eliminating that separate purchasing provision.
• Section 1 also revises Section 10 to name the board of commissioners as Tift County's purchasing agent for all county purchases.
• Section 1 requires that purchasing and bidding be conducted according to a purchasing and bidding policy adopted by the board rather than fixed statutory steps.
• Section 2 repeals any conflicting laws, a standard clause ensuring the new provision controls over inconsistent prior law.

1. 2026-05-11Effective Date 2026-05-11
2. 2026-05-11Act 542
3. 2026-05-11House Date Signed by Governor (Cámara de Representantes)
4. 2026-04-06House Sent to Governor (Cámara de Representantes)
5. 2026-02-24Senate Passed/Adopted (Senado)
6. 2026-02-24Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senado)
7. 2026-02-17Senate Read and Referred (Senado)
8. 2026-02-12House Passed/Adopted (Cámara de Representantes)

• Jaclyn Ford (R, HD-170)Patrocinador principal
• Angie O'Steen (R, HD-169)

1. AprobadaVotación: Cámara de Representantes12 de febrero de 2026

   156 a favor, 0 en contra (11 sin votar, 8 ausentes)

   Local Calendar : House Vote #506

2. AprobadaVotación: Senado24 de febrero de 2026

   53 a favor, 0 en contra (1 sin votar, 1 ausentes)

   Local Consent Calendar: Senate Vote #571

• Tift County government
• local legislation
• county purchasing rules
• government procurement